Mexican restaurants in Mexico
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Fonda Margarita
Possibly the capital’s premier hangover- recovery spot – witness the line down the street on Saturday mornings – this humble eatery under a tin roof whips up batches of comfort food for the day ahead. Soulful fare like pork back in chile salsa verde is doled out of giant clay dishes. The fonda is beside Plaza Tlacoquemécatl, six blocks east of Avenida Insurgentes.
reviewed
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La Providencia
Zipolite's most suave dining option has an open-air lounge area where you can sip a drink while you peruse the menu and place your order. The flavorsome and well presented food is a nuevo mexicano treat, from cold beetroot and ginger soup to chicken breast in blue-cheese-and-pumpkin-flower sauce.
reviewed
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B
Restaurante Los Danzantes
Delicious Mexican fusion food and a spectacular architect-designed setting make Los Danzantes one of Oaxaca’s most special dining spots. An old colonial patio now sports high patterned walls of adobe brick and cool pools of water in a highly contemporary configuration, half open to the sky. Welcoming young staff serve up a small but first-class selection of food: try one of the excellent duck dishes. The only gripe is that servings are not on the generous side. Desserts are very good too, and the restaurant has its own brand of mezcal.
reviewed
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C
La Tramoya
Hearty Mexican meat dishes are set out on spacious sidewalk tables. Ravenous? Try the carne azteca – a steak stuffed with huitlacoche (corn fungus) and served on a bed of nopal es (prickly pear cactus).
reviewed
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Taquería El Fogón
Taquería El Fogón serves outstanding tacos al pastor (rotisserie pork tacos) and several other variations on the tortilla-packed-with-goodies concept. Vegetarians can dig into quesadillas or stuffed potatoes.
reviewed
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E
Café de Olla
This well-loved traditional Mexican restaurant nurtures a lively atmosphere with its sidewalk grill and open kitchen.
reviewed
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Birriería las Nueve Esquinas
Half a dozen blocks south of the city center, the un-touristy Nueve Esquinas (nine corners) neighborhood specializes in birria, meat steamed in its own juices until it’s so tender it melts in your mouth. Birriería las Nueve Esquinas does it best. The open, tiled kitchen, with its in-house tortillería is as beautiful as the tasty and absurdly tender barbacoa de borrego (baked lamb) and birria de chivo (steamed goat) served in traditional ceramic casseroles. Enjoy them with a stack of fresh tortillas and smaller bowls of guacamole, pickled onions and salsa verde (green sauce) swimming with cilantro and perfectly ripe chunks of avocado.
reviewed
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El Cardenal
Possibly the finest place in town for a traditional meal, El Cardenal occupies three floors of a Parisian-style mansion with a pianist sweetly playing in the background. Breakfast is a must, served with a tray of just-baked sweet rolls and a pitcher of frothy, semi-sweet chocolate. For lunch, go for the oven-roasted veal breast, Oaxaca-style chiles rellenos (chili stuffed with meat or cheese, usually fried with egg batter), or in summer, escamoles (ant larvae, a much-coveted specialty).
reviewed
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La Terraza del Zócalo
With dining on a broad balcony overlooking the Zócalo toward the national palace, La Terraza makes a promising new alternative to the ho-hum hotel restaurants on the same side of the plaza. Oaxaca-style enchiladas and cecina de Yecapixtla (thinly sliced salted meat from a town in the state of Morelos) highlight a menu of regional classics. Enter at ground level through the jewelry arcade (there are various foreign flags above the entryway) and look for the elevator.
reviewed
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Antigua Hacienda de Tlalpan
The setting is sublime; an 18th-century hacienda tastefully resurrected into one of the city’s quintessential colonial-style restaurants. The dining rooms are set around lovely gardens, complete with showy peacocks and a small pond with swans. The menu reads like a novel, with a vast choice including some delectable soups: pumpkin flower, cold avocado, lobster bisque and black bean. Follow this with a fish or spicy meat dish like roast pork loin in a chili sauce.
reviewed
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TierrAdentro
A popular gathering center for political progressives and coffee-swigging, laptop-toting locals (not that they’re mutually exclusive), this large indoor courtyard restaurant and café is a comfortable place to while away the hours. It’s run by Zapatista supporters, who hold frequent cultural events and conferences on local issues. A simple yet delicious menú compa (M$35) rotates daily, with hearty offerings such as rice and beans with handmade tortillas.
reviewed
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Villa Saverios
Villa Saverios takes the concept of 'Baja Med' to absurd heights. The results? Try beef cheeks stuffed with ancho chilies; mesquite-grilled quail; tuna sashimi; gourmet burritos; sliced raw lobster with a chile vinaigrette; filet mignon carpaccio; or abalone served in its shell and smothered with chipotle cream sauce (gulp). Classical music tinkles over a fairly formal dining room, so dress appropriately.
reviewed
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K
Cenaduría Tlayudas Libres
Drivers double-park along the entire block to eat here. The filling, tasty tlayudas are large, light, crisp, hot tortillas folded over frijoles, quesillo and your choice of salsa. Half the fun is taking in the late-night scene as motherly cooks fan the streetside charcoal grills, raising showers of sparks. Sit on benches around the range or at tables in the adjacent building.
reviewed
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María Bonita
Come here for economical and tasty traditional Oaxacan food. Precede your fish, steak or mole with a good appetizer or soup, such as the sopa Xóchitl (squash, squash blossom and sweet corn). There’s a good breakfast range too. The old building is on a noisy corner, but the tasteful art and relaxed service make it all OK.
reviewed
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Eucalipto
Named after the droopy looking eucalyptus gum tree in the courtyard, this pleasant place conjures up a perkier range of pastas and an array of meat dishes (thankfully, not koala) - from rib eye to T-bone - and a selection of wines, from Chile to France. It's one of the priciest in town, but it's excellent quality cuisine.
reviewed
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Birriería La Guadalajara
Birriería La Guadalajara Birria (stewed goat, beef or lamb) is the specialty here, and you can order it made de borrego (lamb), de res (beef) or de chivo (goat). Big steaming bowls (or tacos, if you wish) will land on your table and keep you energized for hours.
reviewed
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La Antigua
The location and ambience outshine the food at this charming terrace restaurant overlooking the plaza. But it’s worth considering for the made-to-order salsa and tortillas and the sizzling molcajete de arrachera, a traditional beef and cheese stew simmering in a spicy chili sauce.
reviewed
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Restaurant el Cordobes
This locals’ joint, near Hotel Miralmar, is on the north side of the plaza in a 100-year-old building. Weak ‘American’ coffee is served quickly, with a warm smile, and it’s a perfect place to relax for a bit, sluice down a cerveza (beer) and look out on the main plaza.
reviewed
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Wala Wala
This cheerfully decorated restaurant serves inexpensive, tasty home-style meals. It’s mostly basic Mexican and pasta with a few specialties such as lobster (M$225) and pollo con naranja (chicken with orange, M$80). There’s live music three nights a week.
reviewed
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Karne Garibaldi
This place has two specialties: carne en su jugo (meat cooked in its own broth flavored with beans, bacon and green tomatoes) and fast service (so speedy it landed in the Guinness Book of Records in 1996). Neither will disappoint.
reviewed
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Casa de Pancho
It couldn't be more simple: a few plastic tables set up in a mostly-bare room. But the economical pozole, enchiladas and other basic dishes are simply splendid. Carlos, the genial waiter/cook/owner, loves to spread the gospel of salsa.
reviewed
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Azul y Oro
Chef Ricardo Muñoz searches high and low in Mexico for traditional recipes that he re-invents to perfection. Fruits of his research include crispy ravioli stuffed with duck and the most scrumptious sopa de tortilla (tortilla soup).
reviewed
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Mamá's Royal Café
Mexican decorations splash cheerful colors over the patio here, and breakfasts are the best reason to come. They're big and delicious and include several versions of eggs benedict, French toast and plenty of Mexican egg dishes.
reviewed
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L’Eden
This quality restaurant’s tempting European and Mexican menu includes fondue suiza,sopa azteca and succulent meat dishes. There’s a lengthy wine list too, including French and Spanish vintages.
reviewed
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La Paloma
La Paloma is an elegant, spacious restaurant with a glass atrium roof and greenery that includes bamboo and banana trees. The menu is creative and varied, with tasty pasta, beef, chicken and fish dishes.
reviewed
